Abstract: A device for the precise edge alignment and shift-free transfer of sewing material includes a feed device, a clamping carriage, and a swingably mounted stop straightedge. The material is manually placed in the feed device, between lowerable clamping tongues and a substantially flat support arm, in such a manner that its forward edge, which is to be aligned, is located in the vicinity of the stop straightedge, which is temporarily swung upward for aligning the material. The stop straightedge has a vacuum chamber which exerts suction on the material, and the suction action is further intensified by jets of air which emerge from the bottoms of the clamping tongues and are directed obliquely to the stop straightedge. In this way, the edge of the material is aligned precisely along the stop straightedge, without contact by the operator. Thereupon the aligned material is transferred forward, without shifting, to a position beneath the clamping levers of the clamping carriage.

Abstract: An automatic sewing device for the sewing of workpieces of different size, such as collars, cuffs or the like, the workpieces having a seam section extending in a straight line where they differ in size, has a workpiece holding plate to press the workpiece on a bearing plate and to displace it on the bearing plate. The workpiece holding plate has two seam forming sections of maximum possible size and is made in one piece. Further devices are provided for shifting the workpiece holding plate after a 1st seam contour section has been sewn to move said workpiece holding plate with respect to said 1st seam contour section to a position of the workpiece holding plate where a second seam forming section corresponds to a second seam contour section.

Abstract: So as to sew a pocket-flap to a workpiece, the pocket-flap and a cut-out pocket are positioned relative to each other at a predetermined distance, in which they do not overlap, and relative to the workpiece. The workpiece, the cut-out pocket and the flap are conveyed to a sewing position without being displaced one in relation to the other. In the sewing position the cut-out pocket and the workpiece are joined together by means of a seam. The pocket-flap is then moved from a first position into a second position, in which it partially overlaps the cut-out pocket. It is then connected with the workpiece by a fastening seam.

Abstract: A cutting device for a sewing system having a work table, and a material clamp on the work table for transporting sewing material to a cutting point. The cutting device includes two wedge-shaped knives arranged at the cutting point, for producing gusset cuts in the material, and an elongated opening in the work table for allowing the wedge-shaped knives to pass through the work table to cut the material. The cutting device further includes a clamping device for clamping the material at the cutting point so as to increase the tension in the material and thereby increase the controllability of the location at which the wedge-shaped knives make the gusset cuts. Preferably the camping device which includes two transversely movable clamp halves tightens the sewing material transverse to the direction of transport of the sewing material. Further, a slide plate attached to the surface of the work table includes shoulders or tensioning beads for tensioning the material.

Abstract: A sewing-material feeding device for a sewing machine has an upper material feeder and a lower material feeder which coact for feeding the sewing material, the lower material feeder being adjacent to the throat plate. The needle passes downward through an extension associated with the upper material feeder, the extension defining a downward-facing resting surface, the resting surface obstructing upward movement of said sewing material and thereby reducing fluttering of the sewing material as the needle is pulled upward and out of the sewing material. A tongue adjacent the throat plate is urged upward and against a portion of the upper material feeder so as to further reduce fluttering of the sewing material as the needle is pulled upward and out of the sewing material. The tongue has a throat hole for receiving the needle when it pierces the sewing material and passes into the throat plate.

Abstract: An overhead conveyor for articles to be transported suspended from hangers, the conveyor having at least one delivery point (A) at which the hangers are to be automatically delivered from a conveyor line into a second line. A swingable slide rail is provided at the delivery point, the rail being adapted to be brought from an upper position of rest into a lower inclined operating position by the weight of a clothing hanger present on it. When the slide rail is in its inclined operating position, a clothing hanger resting on it slides down the slide rail toward a receiving rod in the second line. When the slide rail is in its position of rest, hangers which are not to be delivered are able to pass by the slide rail without being obstructed.

Abstract: A zip-fastener feeding device for an automatic sewing unit comprises an introduction device, an endless drawing means guided via a drive wheel and via deflection pulleys and a guiding device. Zip fasteners can be introduced through the introduction device by means of the drawing means by at least one guiding channel of the guiding device onto a workpiece retaining plate or a zip-fastener retainer provided in the latter and these zip fasteners can be precisely positioned there.

Abstract: The presser device includes a feeder foot, a holding foot and a link transmission provided between the two feet, the two feet cooperating alternately. The feeder foot has a spur which cooperates temporarily with a mating surface on the cloth feeder. During the feed phase, the spur is obliquely inclined and does not press against the material being sewn, and therefore permits dependable ruffling of an upper layer of sewing material with respect to a lower layer of sewing material. At the start and at the end of the feed phase, the spur is vertically directed and presses against the sewing material, and thus smooth tension-ruffle-free sewing together, particularly of thin material, is made possible.

Abstract: The bobbin case which is received by the looper has an upstanding generally cylindrical wall which surrounds the looper-thread bobbin. Forming part of the wall is a free-standing finger against which an end of a leaf spring rests. The looper thread, which has been withdrawn from the looper-thread bobbin and wrapped around the finger, is pulled through the constricted place between the leaf spring and the finger and then conducted through a threading slot provided by a radially-extending cam on the outer surface of the wall. The looper thread then comes against an inclined, downward-facing shoulder provided on the outside of the wall, slides down the shoulder, and passes finally into a long horizontal slot in the wall. The looper thread exits the bobbin case at an end point of the horizontal slot for being dependably caught by a thread catcher of a thread-cutting device.

Abstract: A second workpiece, for instance a pocket blank, is placed with its edge regions protruding on at least three sides, on a folding device which forms part of the automatic sewing machine. The folding device has a swingable outer frame which has a plurality of inwardly and outwardly moveable bend-over devices with Z-shaped angles which fold the protruding edge regions around a so-called "sword". Thereupon, the folded second material is placed on a first workpiece which is present in a receiving station. Then the folded edge regions are continuously fixed over their entire length by a holding element which is embedded in an insert plate provided within the receiving station. The holding element permits the bend-over devices to move back away from the workpieces into their starting position, without carrying the folded edge regions along with them and thereby unfolding the folded edge regions.

Abstract: An eyelet buttonhole sewing machine has a suction device between the throat plate and the wedge-shaped knife of the buttonhole cutting device. The suction device includes a suction tube and is connected to a vacuum generator, for instance an ejector nozzle or a transvector nozzle. The looper thread is brought near the suction device by a thread puller. When the looper thread is cut by the thread cutting device at the end of the sewing process, suction is applied to the suction tube, pulling the end of the looper thread into the opening of the suction tube. In this way, the looper-thread end assumes a well defined position in which it is disposed for being completely covered by the corresponding welt of the following buttonhole to be sewn. With the suction device and thread puller operating as described, it is no longer necessary to clean the buttonhole by cutting off the end of the looper thread.

Abstract: A rotatably mounted needle plate (30) in the form of a cylindrical sleeve is provided for a sewing machine (1) with which seams can be produced as a result of a relative movement between the sewing machine (1) and a cloth holder (68). The needle plate (30) has at least one needle-plate attachment (37) and at least two needle holes (38, 38'), a longitudinal axis (39) of each needle hole (38, 38') being radial to an axis of rotation (40) of the needle plate (30). The needle-plate attachment (37) provides cloth resting surfaces (41) surrounding each needle hole (38, 38') which are at different distances from the axis of rotation (40). By rotating the needle plate (30) there is obtained an adjustment of the sewing level, as a result of which it is assured that the lower side of the cloth will dependably rest on the cloth resting surfaces (41) during the sewing even when the cloth has partially thick regions within the course of the seam.

Abstract: A sewing-material workpiece holder for holding and positioning the sewing part. The workpiece holder is movable in the longitudinal direction of the sewing-machine arm and also in a direction transverse thereto. The holder is connected in form-locked manner via a toothed drive to a carrier. The toothed drive includes a toothed drive member mounted on the carrier, and a rack which is mounted on the sewing-material holder, the rack being in engagement with the toothed drive member when the workpiece holder is mounted on the carrier. The drive member is driven by at least one motor. The holder is locked to the carrier by a guide block or clamp which is swingably mounted on the carrier and swingable into a lower, locking position. A predetermined positional association of the sewing-material holder with the carrier is made possible by an alignment device on the carrier.

Abstract: In a device for ascertaining the actual feed transmittted by an feed device f an industrial sewing machine to a material to be sewn, in which the number of the threads moved across a sensor arrangement is counted and the feed is calculated from the previously detected thread density, it is provided, for obtaining an exact thread count which is as independent as possible of the orientation of the sewn web, to place ahead of the photocell (10) of the sensor arrangement a rotating slit diaphragm (7) with at least one radially extending parallel limited slit (8). Preferably a second, rotationally adjustable, but fixed slit diaphragm (5) is provided, having slits (6) opening across a set angular sector, the rotatitng slit diaphragm (7) having a larger number of slits (8). Because of this the required rpm of the slit diaphragm (7) can be reduced. To avoid errors caused by the pattern of the material it is possible to operate in the relatively longer wave infrared spectrum.

Abstract: A sewing machine has a sewing head with a rotary housing, in which a needle bar is arranged, which is slidably supported. A 1st partial transmission unit and a 2nd partial transmission unit are provided as a drive and have a total transmitting ratio of 1. In order to make the moment of inertia of the rotary housing as small as possible, the transmitting ratio of the 1st partial transmission unit is smaller than 1 and the transmitting ratio of the 2nd partial transmission unit is correspondingly larger than 1.

Abstract: A storage conveyor which has a loading point and a removal point and in which a removal device is arranged preceding (upstream from) the removal point. The removal device includes a separately driven removal belt which is arranged between the two major courses of the horizontally circulating conveyor chain. The removal belt is guided so that it passes from below the conveyor chain to above it. The hanger hooks which rest with their top region on the conveyor chain are engaged at their tip by the removal belt, lifted off the conveyor chain and transferred to a slide rail at the removal point which they engage at their top region, and along which they then slide under the action of gravity. The removal belt can be moved faster than the conveyor chain, so as to separate the hangers as they are being lifted off the conveyor chain. As a result of these features of the storage conveyor, it is possible to supply and remove the hangers in a straight line so that high throughput is possible.

Abstract: A conveyor which can be used both as a storage conveyor for storing goods hanging on hangers, particularly articles of clothing, and as a feed or an oblique conveyor. A traction belt which rotates in a direction of transport grasps the hanger hooks at their tip, whereby the hangers are engaged away from their center-of-gravity line. In this way, both the loading and the delivery points of the conveyor can be developed in an operatively reliable manner. Since the traction belt, structured preferably as a toothed belt, can be supported at any desired place without preventing or impeding its transporting ability, the storage conveyor can be of any desired length. By means of a guide ledge which is formed on the base body of the conveyor and extends parallel to the direction of transport, the hangers transported are prevented from swinging out and thus sliding out of the conveyor. The particular application of the conveyor is determined by selection of the traction belt.